If you haven't yet, follow us onX (Twitter)orMastodonto know when we post new articles, and join ourRedditor Subscribe to us onYouTubeto check out our content and interact with our awesome community. Thank you for supporting us! Dragon Ball has had a huge influence on almost everyone's lives, and for me, a big reason was video games. I enjoyed the anime, but nothing compared to the adrenaline-pumping action in the Dragon Ball Z video games. The specific game that got me so into it was Dragon Ball Z: Budokai. When it was released in 2002, I was blown away by how gorgeous a game could look, the addicting fighting mechanics, and special moves like the Kamehameha. It was easily my favorite fighting game until Budokai Tenkaichi came along. Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi evolved the series further, pushing the game into a full 3D environment and making fighting much closer to the anime. And, with tons of characters and forms to power up into, it was hard not to love. Now, over 14 years later, Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero, the next entry into the Budokai Tenkaichi series, is here. After playing it at Summer Game Fest, I was blown away again by how wonderful it felt to play and all the visual improvements that make this feel like the premiere way to enjoy this series. If you have ever played the Budokai Tenkaichi series before, you will know exactly how it feels to play. You run and fly around a huge open area, chasing your opponent and trying to find openings to attack. You can use two types of attacks to create different melee combos: your Ki attack to shoot Ki Blasts at the enemy and holding down buttons to either use special abilities or change your form (going into Super Saiyan). You can also overcharge your Ki bar and access an epic ultra attack.
The new visuals make the models, environments, and attacks look incredible. It's mind-blowing to see how everything looks, especially for these ultra attacks. Everything from the Kamehamehas to the Spirit Bombs is beautifully animated and presented. It feels like Bandai has learned some lessons from Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot and implemented similar visuals into this type of game, which works incredibly well and is so amazing to watch.
In my time with Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero, I played about 6-7 matches and used a different combination of characters each time. You can have three on a team, and I always choose the base versions of each fighter. For example, instead of choosing to start with Goku in Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan form, I would start with the base Goku to transform however I please. The game felt fantastic to control, and I adored the mechanics, especially the terrain destruction and weather changes. Seeing a stray Kamehameha accidentally destroy a rock formation was extremely cool.
But the part that blew me away was the content, which I couldn't try out myself.
I could only get hands-on with the Versus mode, but before this, I had a presentation that went over some of the other modes we can expect in the game. First, I learned about the episodic battles, which follow specific characters throughout their stories. For example, we can follow Goku through his Dragon Ball Z story to Dragon Ball Super. There will be cutscenes as well, but to give it a new spin, you can access a first-person view from Goku instead of being able to see all of the characters, which I thought was so cool.
Now, while this is awesome, we also have Custom Battles, which are even cooler. These are battles that you can put together and share with others. This means setting different characters, setting the stage, and even creating cutscenes that can trigger throughout the fight. It reminds me of games like Wargroove, where you could make your campaigns, but in Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero is about creating the fantasy matchup you have always wanted.
Overall, Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero is shaping up wonderfully, and I can't wait for the full release. I am completely sold on it, from the wealth of characters and forms that will be there to the world destruction and gorgeous aesthetics. I couldn't be happier with what I played, and it felt like all of my desires for a new entry into the series were there. From the custom battles to the fantastic way it feels when playing, this will be a must-have game for all Dragon Ball and fighting game fans.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero can be pre-ordered on Steam now for $69.99. There is no word on Steam Deck compatibility yet, but Bandai Namco has been on point with great compatible games, so I am hoping this will be one of them.
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Noah Kupetsky
A lover of gaming since 4, Noah has grown up with a love and passion for the industry. From there, he started to travel a lot and develop a joy for handheld and PC gaming. When the Steam Deck released, it just all clicked.
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